Written by Alan-Michael Chest, M.Ed., LMHC
Springfield Native Dr. Paula Porter has served as a beacon in the community for over 20 years.
Dr. Porter currently maintains full-time work as an English teacher for Springfield Public Schools. Her professional achievements include working collaboratively with other teachers to plan action goals as a means of appropriately directing student academic success. In 2012 Dr. Porter helped her 10th grade students receive the highest MCAS gains in the Springfield Public School District.
Over the years, Dr. Porter has worked diligently to engage youth in after school programming which consisted of bringing student interests to the forefront.
Dr. Porter is the founder and executive director of the Youth Social Educational Training (YSET) Academy based in Springfield, MA.
Since 2003, YSET has functioned as a safety net and training center for numerous youth driven activities which include career counseling, music production, job training such as writing professional resumes, and formal etiquette, etc. Over the years, the YSET program received recognition from multiple political figures including the mayor, city council members, state representatives, senators, and the governor’s office. In addition to these commendations, Dr. Porter has received numerous awards including the Bishop Elizabeth Williams’ Achievement Award of Freedom House Church of God, the Business West Magazine’s Difference Makers Award, Mount Calvary Baptist Church’s Miriam Award, The Champion of Character Award from Power Gospel Church, The Community Excellence Award from the Springfield Black Music Month Committee, and the MICAH award from Pioneer Valley Project.
Despite these achievements, adequate funding has maintained as a consistent hindrance as there has been no monetary assistance at the government level.
During the pandemic, Dr. Porter drove Christmas gifts to families to ensure that those less fortunate were granted the opportunity to experience a piece of joy during the holidays. This is just one example of an act of kindness that YSET brings, but without the appropriate monetary support, challenges to run fully functioning programming for children is a challenging endeavor.
Dr. Porter highlights that there has been some assistance from the community, but it has been very minimal at best. Porter recognizes Head of YSET Resources, Karen Cress, who has been super helpful with providing some oversight to YSET programming.
In a perfect world, Dr. Porter would like to see YSET fully operating a five day a week program in which students can earn money after school and avoid risky involvement in the streets. A current goal for this venture is raising $20,000 to retain the vision of bringing social educational training to students from disadvantaged neighborhoods.
Dr. Porter sees this initiative as her five-year plan which in addition to professional training would include well balanced meals, services that students enjoy for free, and consistent programming that students can depend on. YSET programming within this structure would run for twelve weeks at a time.
How did the idea for your after-school program come about?
I saw too many teens with nothing to do after school.
What was your key driving force to become an entrepreneur?
I did not set out to be an entrepreneur. I saw too many people of color in poverty.
How did you come up with the name YSET?
Two of the students said that we needed a name. One student said Youth With A Purpose and the other student said Youth Social Educational Training. Originally, our acronym was YWAP/YSET. We stuck with YSET over the years as students liked it better as it mirrored the name of the rap group Dipset.
How do you raise funding for your venture?
Unfortunately, I can only financially carry the YSET program one day a week. Since grant funding is political at times, I have worked hard to fund the program. For example, I’ve used my tax refund more times than I’ve ever wanted to so that I could pay teens $20 an hour for working at YSET’s Job training program. Moreover, I have worked several jobs through the years to fund the program. I am blessed to hold so many licenses and degrees. My part time jobs include being a site director for UMASS 180 program which helps aspiring teachers to enter the profession, teaching undergraduate and graduate degree courses at American International College (AIC), and coaching sports at Putnam High School.
How do you market your programming, and which tactics have been most successful?
I market to our students via flyers and local radio.
How do you build a successful client base?
I build a successful client base as everything is free. On Saturday July 17, 2021, YSET hosted a Worship the King event with Greater Love Ministries. This event occurred at 57 School Street in Springfield, MA from 2pm-5pm which consisted of a free cookout & raffle. The raffle consisted of televisions, bikes, and cash gift cards.
What kind of culture exists in your organization, and how did you establish it?
The primary culture/demographics served are Latino and Black students and families.
Have you kept in contact with any Alumni YSET students?
I am proud to see Alan-Michael Chest interviewing me for the Metro Record. Alan-Michael was one of the students that attended the YSET program back in 2005. He and Brian Stokes were two of the success stories as they were performing artists interested in music production that went on to do great things in their adulthood. I have seen some past Alumni over the years, but not as often as I would like. I am always proud when I see students grow after graduation from YSET. A networking Alumni event would be a great idea to reconnect past students who have graduated from YSET programming.
Best of luck to you Dr. Porter with all our future endeavors! Dr. Porter is hoping that readers of this article can spread the word about the YSET academy through word of mouth, social media sites, and public service announcements. For those interested in donating money to support YSET programming, please reach out to Dr. Porter at ysetpro@yahoo.com. Donation funds can also be sent to the YSET Academy directly located at 57 School Street, P.O. Box 6044, Springfield, MA 01101.
